Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
The Hotel Golan in Tiberias, Israel looks a bit old-fashioned, but that doesn’t matter: it has great balconies which offer an unhindered view on the Sea of Galilee and the Golan Heights. Like every middle-class hotel in Tiberias it is not situated directly at the sea, but up in the mountains.
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The Sea of Galilee is a lake 200 meters below sea level. It is the biggest fresh water reservoir of Israel and an important touristic site. The river Jordan is running through the lake, later on defining the border to Jordan. On one side of the lake the Golan heights officially belonging to Syria are located. As these hills are good places to launch missiles on Israel, the place is under control of the IDF since 1967.
Not far away from the river Jordan and the border crossing to Jordan you can find the city of Bet She’an and the archeological national park. The place was first settled five thousand years BCE. It was once under Egyptian reign and was later conquered by King David, then by the Romans. Under the rule of Byzantium the town became mainly Christian and was by that time bigger than Jerusalem.
The Bible tells about a final fight between the forces of evil and the armies of God: “Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army” (Revelation 19:19). “Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16) – and this place is in Christian belief the town of Megiddo.
Israel is a country with a very good infrastructure and getting snacks and something to drink was absolutely no-frills. But within Jerusalem I only found small shops and no big supermarket chains where you could simply fill your trunk with some bottles of mineral water – as I normally do while travelling throughout countries with high temperatures; a pure necessity.
If you try to plan your route throughout Palestine, you’re kind of left alone. Popular map software shows streets but no street names and only some limited points of interest. Open Street Map helps you out; but the ignorance is a political signal. Some areas and routes are defined as no-go places. By good reason?
The old city walls of Jerusalem date back to the 16th century CE. As they were built to defend the city you can also climb up and walk on them – the route around the old city center is well secured but includes many steps up and down; and it is not suitable for children. It is a good chance to look into the backyards and see how everyday life in such a town can exist.
The Israel museum is located in the southwest of Jerusalem, directly opposite of the parliament (Knesset). It houses important archeological remains, Jewish art and contemporary and modern international art. It is a fantastic modern museum which also features a sculpture garden. Within the “Shrine of the Book” the scripture roles of Qumran are stored.
When travelling through Israel you will often read that restaurants are kosher. Or even if you don’t recognize this, the rules of the Thora and the Bible will influence what you’ll get to eat. At first Jews are only allowed to eat mammals that are cloven-hoofed and ruminants (no pigs, no rabbits, no horses) or that have scales and fins (no clams, no prawns, no lobster).
A main reason to visit Israel was my wish to see Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Center in Jerusalem. It originates from my political work, from my continuous wish to learn more about the Shoah and even because of the fact that two women of my home town were honored in the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations and I organized a memorial event for them some years back in time.
Continue reading “A place and a name”